Improving the C-store Customer Experience

Tom Cook, King-Casey
Jan 10, 2014
CSNews
Few would dispute that the typical convenience store takes a comprehensive approach to merchandising to its customers. Therein lies the problem — quantity vs. quality.
To provide a convenient and superior customer experience, c-store merchandising strategies need to be developed based on understanding customers and how they operate (use and interact) within each “zone” in the store.
The most successful retail concepts have recognized that their stores are not just branded boxes. Each store is actually a collection of many individual “customer operating zones.” Customers behave differently in each zone. Their needs and expectations are different. Their attitudes and mindset are different from one zone to the next. Each of these unique zones is right for one merchandising strategy and dead wrong for another.
By identifying these zones, understanding how customers behave in each zone and establishing specific business goals for each zone, c-store operators can craft zone-specific merchandising strategies that are responsive to how their customers use these zones. This makes the customer experience faster, easier and more enjoyable, while distinguishing the brand and maximizing business results.
The concept of developing merchandising and communications strategies based on “customer operating zones” was pioneered by King-Casey decades ago. This blend of science and creativity is used to help retailers, restaurants and others manage their entire customer experience — a curb-to-curb journey. The acronym “COZI”(Customer Operating Zone Improvement) captures the methodology to achieve this. COZI involves a multi-step process, as follows:

Step 1. Conduct Zone Assessment
The first step is to understand your convenience store environment and your customers. Begin by identifying all of the COZI zones within your store. What are your “zones of opportunity?”
Any retail store is actually a series of many different zones. By identifying these and understanding how customers interact in these zones, you can develop communication strategies that optimize business results while improving the customer experience. This floor plan identifies a few typical customer
operating zones.
Your c-store chain is likely to have the following zones:
Street zone
Entry zone
Grocery zone
Cooler zone
Candy/tobacco zone
ATM zone
Magazine zone
Hot beverage zone
Pay zone
Health and beauty care zone
Fountain zone
Exit zone
Each product category can result in its own zone and there are certainly many other potential zones, such as restrooms, parking, gas pumps, etc.
Once all of your zones are identified, determine how customers use and interact with these zones. Measure the time they spend in each zone. For each zone, probe to discover customer needs, expectations, attitudes and behavior. What problems do they encounter in these zones? Do they understand what’s being communicated to them? Here’s where focus groups, customer interviews and video tracking studies can be particularly insightful and helpful.
Now, walk around the store and do your own assessment of your current merchandising and communications. Are your merchandising strategies appropriate for the zones? Do you have the right message for the right zone? How can messages in this zone be optimized to drive sales?
Step 2. Develop Zone Strategies
This step consists of three elements: What is it that you want to achieve; what is it that you want to say; and how you are going to say it?
Business objective. Begin by identifying the business strategy for each of the zones. What is it that you hope to achieve in this zone? How will you measure improvement? Note that your business objectives may vary from zone to zone.
Message content. What is it that you must communicate to achieve your business objectives for this zone? The message should be responsive to how customers use this zone (e.g., you don’t want a long and detailed message in the entry zone, as research tells us that customers only take two to three seconds to view this message).
Physical element. What is the physical nature of communications in this zone that will best communicate your message? What would work best in this zone — a poster? A window decal? Digital signage? Aisle toppers? Part 2 of this column will concentrate on convenience store zone merchandising solution development, refinement and implementation.
Tom Cook is a principal of King-Casey. Established in 1953, King-Casey is a leading retail branding and design firm with a particular specialty in restaurants and foodservice. King-Casey’s focus is on building its clients’ businesses by strengthening their brands and improving their customer experience. For information, visit www.king-casey.com. Cook can be reached at (203) 571-1776 or tcook@king-casey.com.
Improving the C-store Customer Experience, Part 2
Tom Cook, King-Casey
CSNews
As discussed in Part 1 of this column, convenience store merchandising strategies need to be developed based on understanding customers and how they operate (use and interact) within each “zone” in the store. The most successful retail concepts have recognized that their stores are not just branded boxes. Each store is actually a collection of many individual “customer operating zones.”
Customers behave differently in each zone. Their needs and expectations are different. Their attitudes and mindset are different from one zone to the next. Each of these unique zones is right for one merchandising strategy and dead wrong for another.
Part 1 of this column dealt with where the c-store customer experience falls short, and the need to start thinking in terms of customer operating zones. The acronym “COZI” (Customer Operating Zone Improvement) captures the methodology to achieve this. COZI involves a multi-step process. Step 1: Conducting a Zone Assessment and Step 2: Developing a Customer Zone Strategy were already addressed. Here, we discuss steps the remaining three steps:
Step 3. Develop Design Solutions
The last step in the zone strategy process is design — the creation of graphics, images, typography, branding, displays, etc. This is what the communication will look like. It’s tempting to jump straight to this step, but don’t fall into that trap. Effective design must be driven by thoughtful analysis and strategy development. Attractive images do not necessarily result in attractive business improvement.

Once you’ve identified all the zones in your store, it’s time to develop a strategy for each zone. Developing a strategy involves a multi-step process. This ensures that the resulting merchandising and communication pieces work effectively within specific zones. Note that the actual “design” is the last step.
Step 4. Implement Zone Strategies
By now, you have identified your business objectives, you know what you want to say and you know how you are going to say it. During this step, you fine-tune and finalize your zone merchandising elements. By all means, evaluate the creative concepts and get team consensus. Keep things objective by using research to validate the concepts with your customers, lapsed customers and non-customers.
Make modifications as necessary and then select several stores that will serve as pilots to test the new initiative. Monitor results during the test period. Measure sales increases, customer flow, throughput and return on investment. The success of these tests will help convince your store operators that this is worth the time, effort and investment.
Step 5. Make Improvements & Rollout
Continue to monitor key measures of success to identify opportunities for improvement. What’s working? What’s not? Why? Make tweaks to optimize business results. Feed these “lessons learned” back into the planning process (the next round of efforts will benefit from what you learned). Use research to find out from customers what’s working and what’s not. Finally, roll out your enhanced strategy to other stores in the system.
Sounds simple? It’s just common sense, you say? You’re right! But it’s amazing how many retail brands (even the really smart ones) overlook the value of developing strategies based on “customer operating zone improvement.” So, it’s time to start thinking in terms of zones.
Tom Cook is a principal of King-Casey. Established in 1953, King-Casey is a leading retail branding and design firm with a particular specialty in restaurants and foodservice. King-Casey’s focus is on building its clients’ businesses by strengthening their brands and improving their customer experience. For information, visit www.king-casey.com. Cook can be reached at (203) 571-1776 or tcook@king-casey.com.